The Walking Dead Recap: The Reluctant Warriors

Plus, new zombie apocalypse survival tips we learned.

Welcome back, Rick. Not crazy, ghost-chasing Rick. Not pacifist, duty-dodging Rick. Just Rick, the reluctant zombie gunslinger that will once again muscle his way through the apocalypse on his own unwavering terms. By going further back to basics with our starring hero, The Walking Dead takes another step towards the taught thriller that hooked viewers back in its first season.

It didn't hurt that this episode was filled with gory, gut-spilling zombies. Their increased, flesh-chomping presence worked two-fold this week: Not only did they bring a new wrinkle to that whole survival thing, but they re-awoke the entire cast's warrior spirit. Popping out of enclosed spaces and pushing down entire fences, the undead really stepped up their game. At least half of the survivors' time was spent on wanton zombie violence, making for an experience as nail biting as it was stomach churning. As eyeballs popped through chain-linked fences and boots curb-stomped zombie skulls like cockroaches, this week had the good stuff.

And while grime is great in its own right, it also helped make the touchy-feely segments — still arguably The Walking Dead's Achilles heel — feel far more palatable. Was sacrificing pigs to slow, somber music a melodramatic and unintentionally humorous way to show Rick's metamorphosis back into a stern leader? Obviously. Did Carol's lecture to the freshly orphaned girls about acting tough feel stale and overplayed? Yep. But, the ham-fisted moves were more tolerable when everyone just spent the past forty minutes finishing zombies with a toy chest's worth of sharp and blunt objects. After all, it's difficult to talk about anything of faux-depth when one's back is constantly against the wall. This rinse and repeat pattern of fighting, fighting, fighting some more, getting one more kill in for good measure, and then pontificating about intangible ideas may be the winning formula from here on out. That said, Michonne's brief moment of baby-induced vulnerability finally pushed her out of her sword- and scowl-swinging personality, possibly hinting at a character with slightly more depth (until she does her next set of crunches). At least the show is discussing something new there.

Luckily, the zombies didn't even need to flash their decaying gums to keep the fear factor alive. The twist that the virus can now mutate into the swine flu on steroids is a welcome one, creating a small, but significant fissure of trust amongst the group. Hopefully this mini-witch hunt will only escalate as more members become increasingly paranoid of an errant sneeze or cough. Then again, we may already be at that point with the extra crispy flu patients and their mysterious grill master. But this would only serve the show better. A "whodunit" framework could be a nice change-up for the overall narrative, shifting the show out of horror-survival territory and into a horror-mystery hybrid. Just so long as our old pal Rick has his muzzle pressed against something before the opening credits roll.

Your Zombie Apocalypse Survival Companion

Useful information from this week's episode.

• If you have a doctor in the group, make sure he doesn't only speak in expository jargon.

• Rats are like candy for zombies, and apparently, saboteurs.

• Zombies are far messier neck biters that vampires. If you have to choose between the two, go with the latter.

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